Tuesday, July 23, 2013

It’s amazing how aviation incidents are reported these days… literally within minutes, details will start to appear online through various websites and blogs.

That’s exactly what happened today, after a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 landed without its front landing gear at New York’s LaGuardia airport. It had around 150 people on board at the time, who were arriving from Nashville.

According to media reports, the airplane skidded to a halt after the technical malfunction, with 10 passengers being treated on the scene for injuries, six of whom were taken to a nearby hospital.

“Southwest Airlines flight 345 landed at New York's LaGuardia at 5:40 PM Eastern Monday evening from Nashville. The aircraft is a Boeing 737-700. Eyewitness reports indicate the aircraft's nose gear collapsed upon landing. There were 150 people on board including Customers and Crew," Southwest Airlines confirmed in a statement emailed to Yahoo! News.

"All Customers have been deplaned and transferred to the terminal," the statement continues. "Initial reports indicate local responders are caring for five Customers and three flight attendants who have reported injuries at this time. Southwest is cooperating with local authorities, and the NTSB has been notified.”

La Guardia was closed for air traffic while emergency personnel helped passengers exit the Boeing 737 jet and federal investigators began trying to determine a cause.

“It’s too early to say what happened,” FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford told Yahoo! News. “The plane is on the ground and the nose is on the ground.”

I’ve included a photo of the aircraft on this page, plus there’s a new video below that shows the plane landing (although the footage is not great quality). Sign-up for The Aviation Writer’s FREE newsletter to keep updated with the latest aviation news, photos and videos – you can subscribe here.